PinkuAoi!
by Hiroko-ka
Summary: Um, this is me having a go at a Phantasia cast-at-school sorta thing. Please lemme know if it seems OOC and anything else. Storyline explained better in the prolouge...Hope people like it!
1. Prolouge

"Cless-kun! Mornin'!" Arche called to Cless, as soon as she turned the street corner. He was only a little far ahead. He turned and smiled,

"Morning, Arche-san!" Arche ran over to him and giggled, 'He still calls me "-san" ...he's so cute! Not only is he cute, he's good looking, really sweet, and an expert fencer!'

"Huh?" Cless looked at her now, confused,

"Nothing~ Hey...you didn't wait for me this morning..." She pouted at him,

"A-Ah! But, when I stopped at your house, your dad said you were determined to get as much sleep as possible..." Arche made a mental note to tell her dad that if it's Cless at the door - wake her up,

"I s'pose..." They continued their conversation up until they reached the school gates. For the first time in a long time, Mint was waiting for her at the gates. She waved at Arche as they entered,

"Good morning, Arche-san!" Arche grinned,

"Mint-chan~ I usually meet you outside class...whats up?"

"Um...Sensei is looking for you...Something about your grades..." Arche heaved a heavy sigh,

"Oh noooo...it's to do with my test, isn't it?! Wah, I'm gonna get kicked out..." Mint waved her hands,

"N-no! I don't think so...I-I mean, you _did_ study, right...?" Arche chose not to answer that, and sighed again. Mint walked over to Arche, "Well...we'll never know 'till we find him. C'mon..." She glanced at Cless,

"G-Good morning, Cless-san..." She blushed a little,

"G-Good morning, Mint-san!" Cless stuttered, also blushing, 'Huh...?' Arche blinked, forgetting about her grades for a minute. Did Cless just blush...? Just as she and Mint walked toward the classroom, a boy with long blue hair tied up walked past. It was probaly her imagination, but she was certain he'd glanced at her as he'd walked past,

"Yo, Cless! What is it? Oh yeah, guess what..." Now Arche thought of it, she'd never really hung out with Cless, only in the mornings' and after school. She sighed again,

"It'll be alright Arche-san!" Mint smiled at her. Did Cless really like her...?

"Arche Klein! These results...!" The teacher began his rant, about Arche's terrible results, as expected. Arche stood in front of his desk and sighed a little. When the teacher finished and sent her away, there were twenty minutes of break left. She walked outside, and found Mint waiting for her,

"Was it...?" Arche looked at the ground,

"Yeah..."

"Oh, Arche-san..." They both stared at the ground, sadly,

"..Sorry Mint-chan...after all that time you spent with me studying..." Mint shook her head, and looked up,

"Never mind! Theres always next time, right?" Arche looked up, her eyes shining,

"You'll help me out again? Aw, Mint-chan, you're the best!"

"Eheh, I expect you want lunch, right?" They walked toward the canteen. Despite her gratitude, Arche wasn't all that up for studying. She was too pre-occupied with solving the mystery. Did Cless really like Mint? She didn't see them hang out all that often, though, she wasn't in all of Mint's classes. Maybe they were in some classes together? Arche felt down now. She really liked Cless. He was just perfect, as far as she was concerened. A real knight in shining armor. An innocent one. The possibility of him liking someone else hadn't really occured to her. Then again, she'd never thought he liked her either, as much as she hoped. If Mint liked him, then... She shook her head,

"Eh? Arche-san? You look kinda down..."

"Huh? Ah! I-I'm just hungry!" Mint laughed,

"That makes sense, now, what should we get..."

Once they'd gotten something small to eat, they went to a nearby bench to eat, 'I should ask her! Yeah! If she likes Cless-kun...I'm her friend, there's no need to be embarrassed!" She glanced down at her food, '...I think I'll eat first...' Once she had finished, and opened her mouth to ask, the bell rang,

"Oh dammit!" She hissed. Mint smiled,

"I know school can be boring, but you enjoy art and sports, right?" Arche nodded,

"Not _all_ sports though, some can be a real pain..!" The headed to class, Arche discussing her dislike of certain sports all the way.

Luckily for Arche, it was art. And she had art with Cless! She liked showing off her skills in the subject. She wished she could show her full potential in sport, but she knew she couldn't. She'd get expelled if she used her broom. She didn't like walking all the time. It was one of the reasons she'd liked Cless. He wasn't at all scared when he saw she could fly on a broomstick. When they were kids, he'd found out by accident. But instead of getting scared, he'd ADMIRED her for it. Cless was so kind.

"Hey, Arche...You alright?" Cless was infront of her, waving a hand in her face. She'd paused in the doorway, in the midst of her daydreaming,

"Cless-kun~" She sighed, then shook her head, realising what she'd said, "A-Ah! Cless-kun!!" She went red, and walked into the classroom quickly. He laughed,

"Arche-san, you've always been odd sometimes. Well, thats what makes you, huh? Anyway, I left something in the grounds, I need to go get it, let Sensei know, ok?"

"I-I'll come!" Cless shook his head,

"It's fine! I'll be back in a minute." He left the classroom, much to Arche's dissapointment. A few minutes later, and Sensei arrived. Arche let her know where Cless had gone, then took her seat. Just before rolecall began, there was a knock on the door,

"Sorry..." Sensei went to the door, and opened it. Arche looked up and blinked. It was Cless's friend! The blue-haired guy! He was speaking to the teacher. The teacher sighed,

"She's so scatterbrained...Ok, I've got a spare PVA glue bottle in my room...Um..." He turned, and nodded at Arche,

"Maybe a walk will wake you up. Can you take this guy to my office? Here are the keys. You know where it is. The amount of detentions..." He shook his head as he walked over back to his desk. Arche stood up, and walked over to the blue-haired guy, who looked taken-aback, 'Weird...' It occured to Arche that this would be a good time to ask about Cless. She realised that he probaly wouldn't say, but that never stopped her! He'd probaly just deny it and make it look obvious anyway. If he was friends with Cless, then he'd have to be pretty nice,  
She began walking toward the teacher's office,

"Uh...Hey..." She began,

"What?"

"Um...Does Cless-kun like anybody?" His fox-like eyes narrowed,

"And why would I tell you?" He asked coolly,

"I dunno! I was just wondering..." The boy shrugged, 'I don't know his name...' "...You're helpful."

"Well, I wouldn't tell you! It's none of your buisness, anyway...why would you _want_ to know, huh?" Arche went a little red,

"That's none of your buisness! 'Sides, he's just a good friend! I need to know these things!"

""Just a good friend"...?" He mocked, then sighed, "Let me guess..."

"W-What? I just wanted to know! Don't need to read stuff into it!" They reached the office. Arche fumbled a little with the keys, managed to open it, and went inside,

"...Jeez, for a friend of Cless-kun, you sure are stuffy." She muttered,

"I heard that, y'know."

"Why do I care? Now, what did you want?" He glanced round,

"Well, you obviously weren't listening." He walked over to a cupboard, opened it, and got out a bottle of PVA glue. He smirked at her as he walked past,

"What?!" She demanded,

"I feel sorry for you...He hasn't said anything, but I think he likes that Mint girl..." He told her quietly, and left. She glared after him, 'What a total jerk...!'

For the rest of the day, the main thing she talked about was the blue-haired boy, and how much she hated him. When the day finally ended, she ended up talking about him to Cless, whilst they walked home,

"And he was just really stuffy...!" She ranted. Cless sweat-dropped,

"Um...you must've said something for him to have gotten annoyed...I mean, he can be sarcastic anyway, but he mainly uses it when he feels annoyed..." Arche went red now,

"I...uh, only asked him...Well..I can't remember!" The idea that he may have said something about her played in her mind,

"Um...he didn't say anything about me, did he?" Cless shook his head,

"I didn't even know you guys had met until just now..." For some reason, this really annoyed Arche,

"Stupid fox-eyed jerk!"

"Uh...His names Chester..." Cless told her, unsure if he should be saying anything. Arche turned to him,

"Aw...Cless-kun...I wanted to never know his name! That should annoy him! ...Then again, I guess I could just pretend I forgot...In fact, I have forgot! I don't even remember that irritating guy!" Cless laughed, then glanced around,

"Well...ok...um, are you gonna practice tonight, by the way? O-Of course, it that's ok with you, I know how your dad feels..." He whispered. Arche smiled,

"Oh, sure, I don't really care what he thinks! I do need to improve my magic..." She replied quietly. Cless nodded,

"And I need to improve on my sword training!" Arche giggled,

"Cless-kun, you don't need to, you're great at sword fighting!" Cless went a little red,

"I'm not that great..." Arche giggled again,

"I'll see you then!" She turned the corner, Cless went home another way, and Arche headed home, smiling, 'He doesn't spend time with Mint-chan like this! Forget what that Chester-jerk says!'

Arche and Cless had gone to the small woods nearby their town. There, Arche had practiced magic by shooting certain targets she and Cless had created, whilst he fought with stick figures they'd made. Arche really loved Cless. He was always so fun to hang out with. She wasn't able to concentrate as much as normal today, considering the idea that Cless liked Mint kept crossing her mind. After awhile, Cless seemed to notice something was up. As they headed back, Cless asked,

"Um...Arche-san...are you ok...?" Arche nodded quickly,

"Yeah! Course! Uh..why?" Cless frowned a little,

"Well...Ok. If you're sure. But still, you seemed...not focused..." 'Maybe...I should ask him! Yeah, that'll prove it once and for all! Yeah'

"Well...Cless-kun..." For the first time ever, she felt scared to ask Cless something. They'd been together for so long, and she had such a massive crush on him, she was scared of the truth,

"Yes...?" He looked at her, confused. It looked so cute, Arche blushed,

"Nothing! Haha, Cless-kun, you sure are cute!" He went a little red,

"Arche-san..." He laughed, embarassed.

Many weeks later...

Arche rolled over on her bed and fell out,

"Ow!" She yelled, rubbing her head. She couldn't believe it. All that time ago, she was bugged by midterms and Cless liking Mint, when her finals were just around the corner, then she'd be in her final high school year! She hadn't realised the year had gone so quickly. She sighed loudly. By finals just around the corner, she meant tomorrow of course. She had never felt so nervous. She was surprised at this nervousness,

"I've got to try! For my dad's sake..." She muttered, climbing back into bed. It'd taken a lot of persuasion to let her into the school, and if she didn't do well in her finals, she'd have to leave. She'd only entered this school one year ago. The headmaster knew she was a half-elf, which was why it'd taken persuasion to let her in. And the other problem which made it all the more worse was if she didn't do well, she may not be able to stay in Cless's class! He was a pretty good student, so he'd so well... Arche had been studying as much as possible for the last three weeks, but was it enough? Tomorrow would decide...

"Haaaaah!" Arche yawned loudly, as she stept out the class. She walked into the grounds, and blinked a few times in the sunlight. She felt she'd been stuck in a dark cave for years.

"Arche-san!" Mint waved at her, walking toward her cheerfully,

"Mint-chan...how can you be so optimistic?" Arche demanded, feeling slightly resentful. Mint smiled,

"Well, I'll have to. I tried my best, and that's all I can do. Right, Arche-san?" Arche didn't look convinced,

"Well...since you helped me study, I'll have to have done well, right?" She began her sentence slowly, and finished on a cheery note. Mint looked a little embarassed,

"Well...It wouldn't be me, it'd be your own efforts, Arche-san!" Arche grinned,

"Yeah right, Mint-chan, we both know that it'll be because of you I pass!" And with that, Arche dragged Mint to the canteen.

And so, several more weeks passed. Arche did indeed manage to pass, and it probaly was thanks to Mint,

"Aw, who cares?! I still passed! Now, whose class will I be in?! Please say Cless-kun..."

The break between the final term and the new semester passed. Arche hung out with Cless as much as she could, as well as Mint. Eventually, school occured, and the classes were decided.

"Hurry up, Cless-kun! The board will have been put up! We'll finally know!" Arche shouted at Cless, exictedly, dragging him along toward the school,

"O-Ok! I know!" He slowed down a little, "You seem worried Arche-san...Don't worry, even if we're not in the same class, we still live near each other, we can meet up any time!" He smiled at her, and Arche had to do her best to stop herself from squeaking, 'He's so cute!!' She then realised that he'd recognised her upset about it. He was so understanding! But, did that mean he realised she liked him? 'Maybe he's not as dense as I thought in that area...'

"Y-Yeah...But! We still gotta believe we'll be in the same class!" She told him, and grinned. He nodded,

"Well, let's hurry!" She giggled,

"I'm the one who should be saying that!" they began hurrying toward the school.

"Arche-san! I just found it, want me to tell you?" Mint asked evenly when Arche and Cless arrived. Arche panted a little, "Well...agh...Yeah, just tell me!" Mint laughed,

"Ok, it said-" Arche interrupted her,

"Actually, I'm gonna find out myself!" And she sprinted toward the crowd of students in the distance. Cless blinked after Arche, then glanced at Mint,

"H-Hi, Mint-san..." Mint seemed surprised,

"Hello, Cless-san...are you feeling worried too?" Cless laughed a little,

"Well, I would like to stay in the same class, I studied hard!" Mint nodded,

"I agree. But, whatever will be will be, right?" Cless smiled,

"Yeah...U-Um, do you want to go over there...with me...?" He paused on "with me" just enough to make it a very awkward question, and his blushing made it all the more awkward. Mint began blushing, and nodded,

"Yes...W-Well, let's see if your efforts paid of, yes, Cless-san?"

Arche took a deep breath. She tried not to go nuts. There was only one thing she could do now,

"YOSHI!" She yelled, punching the air in triumph. She was in Cless's class! As well as that, Mint was also in her class! Arche had mixed feelings on that part, but right now, she was happy, 'Yes yes yes!! Kya, Cless-kun~'

"Arche-san, are you alright?" Once again, Cless was waving his hand in her face, confused. She snapped out of it quickly,

"Cless-kun!" She yelled, "We're in the same class! Ahaha!" Cless blinked, then smiled,

"Yes! Thats great!" Mint tapped Arche on the shoulder,

"Don't forget about me now." Arche gave her a wide smile,

"I know! Course I'm happy about that too!" Cless glanced over at Mint, clearly surprised...and pleased. Arche realised she could use this to her advantage. It'd be easier to observe them, and see if they really did like each other! Deep down, Arche knew it was true, but she was still determined to get proof before she accepted it completely,

"Haha, wow, they're actually being nice to me this year!" Said a familiar voice, that Arche still wished she wasn't familiar with. She glanced over to Cless, and saw him and Chester high-fiving,

"I know! Haha, I can't remember the last time we were in the same class! Must've been middle school..." Arche blinked, her eyes wide. Mint waved in her face,

"Arche-san, something wrong?" Arche glanced at Mint, looking freaked out, then rushed over to the board, checking her class names, 'No way...' Sure enough, Chester's name was listed near the top of the list for her class. She stepped back a little, and Chester walked past her. He stared intently at the board, then looked at her, clearly just as surprised. She glared at him,

"W-What?" He asked, sounding annoyed,

"Jeez..." How was he Cless's friend?! He seemed so...different, so much more.

"You look weak." She told him bluntly. It was the first insult that came to mind. He looked completely taken aback,

"Where did that come from?! How can you even say that to me?! When you're so damn short!" Cless and Mint were in the midst of a conversation, when they overheard Chester and Arche's arguement, which was slowly increasing in volume. Mint looked over at them,

"My, they seem to be...getting along."

"T-Thats getting along?" Cless was dumbfounded by her logic, and went over to break them up. Students were moving away from the source now, clearly trying to avoid the arguing pair,

"Chester! Arche-san! Why're you fighting?" Cless quickly took his place between the two, and looked to them both. Arche and Chester had stopped now, and were simply glaring at each other. Cless sweat-dropped,

"C-C'mon...the year is just starting..." Mint walked over to them,

"Cless-san is right, we're all friends here..."

"Friends?!" Chester asked incredously, "Since when was this annoying little girl my friend?!" Arche mirrored his incredoulous look,

"I would never be friend's with such an irritating fox-eyed jerk!" She turned her back to him,

"What a little-!" Cless interrupted him,

"Chester! Uh..." He desperately cast about for something to talk about, "A-Ah, yeah! Whose our teacher?" Chester blinked,

"You didn't know? Its Lester-sensei...Though everyone calls him Klarth-sensei..." He looked amused now, deliberately ignoring Arche, "He's nice enough, though he's a bit of an eccentric...Not to mention he researches "summoning" and stuff, y'know, magic." He laughed, as Cless gave Arche a side glance, and Mint smiled awkwardly, then whispered quickly to Arche, 'Don't let that bother you.' Being Arche's best friend, Mint knew Arche's little secret. Arche was so tempted to let Chester find out in a much more painful way. She tried imagining firing a fireball at him, and snorted,

"Whats wrong with that?" She asked Chester, turning back to him, "It's nice to have a dream, huh? Or are you so dumb you don't think about other things apart from being mean to others?!"

"You...! I am not! I just find it a bit ridiculous! And I'm not "mean to people" it's just...you get on my nerves!"

"Thanks!"

"Well, thanks for calling me "weak"! I'm so glad you pointed such an obvious flaw of mine out!" His sarcastic tone hinted at yet another argument,

"Agh! You-!"

"What's all this?" A man lay a hand on Chester's shoulder, and then Arche's,

"Klarth-sensei!" Cless exclaimed, surprised, "T-They were just..." Klarth narrowed his eyes at them,

"I've seen this a lot...yes...it must be..." He then gave them all a smile,

"Cless Alvein, Mint Adnade, Arche Klein and Chester Barklight, I presume? Well, I know Chester-kun." Chester nodded,

"Klarth-sensei, why did such an annoying pink monkey get put in your class? I thought you taught the more intelligent people-!" Klarth sighed loudly to interrupt him,

"Chester-kun...higher up as always, I see." Arche smirked at Chester,

"S-Sensei! She just-!"

"Yes, I heard." Chester gulped a little,

"You heard...everything?" Klarth nodded solemly, though his eyes betrayed his amusement at the situation,

"If you have a problem with my research Chester-kun, perhaps you'd like to see my research, and then tell me how silly it is?" Oddly, Klarth looked determined. Arche didn't really understand why, but she did like the fact Chester looked a little intimidated,

"Ahaha...thats alright sensei!" He forced a smile, "It's only one way of looking at it!" Klarth glared at him, then laughed,

"Chester-kun...you are funny..."

"Hey!" Chester's zeal had returned, but Klarth had turned to walk away,

"I look forward to teaching you lot this year...It's nice to be young..." He left them looking a little disorientated. Mint broke the silence,

"Well, seems like a...nice teacher...though I understand what you mean about being eccentic, Chester-san." Chester nodded,

"Yeah...well, good luck to us, I suppose..." Cless had backed out the way of the two now, thinking the argument would stop between them now,

"Well, not _all_ of us." Before she could make a retort, he turned to Cless, "I guess we'd better get to the hall, huh?" Cless nodded,

"See ya, Arche-san...See you later, Mint-san." Arche looked surprised, and nodded, not saying anything as Cless and Chester walked away together. He'd said "See you later" so formally to Mint. Arche sighed aloud, and Mint leaned forward,

"Don't let Chester-san get you down, Arche-san!"

"Hmph, that idiot only wishes he could get me down!" Maybe now would be a good time to ask Mint,

"Hey Mint-chan..."

"Yes...? Oh! We'll be late for the assembly!" She rushed the confused Arche forward toward the hall.

As the principle began her long-winded speech, Arche finally got a grip on her reality,

'Ok, the good news. Cless-kun is in my class again! Plus theres our meetings outside of school from time to time! The netural news: Mint-chan is in my class! She's my best friend! It'll be awesome! Yet it seems likely Cless-kun likes her, so they'll have more time together...but I still see him after school~! And the bad news: That stupid fox-eyed jerk is in my class! He knows I like Cless-kun! And he's just gonna be a general jerk, making this year more difficult!'

Arche wasn't really certain how she should be feeling.

/

Um, yeah, I hope that was ok? Eheh... I need to know if it seemed in-character and any other improvements... (I know this was confusing, but I hope the general storyline is clear!) Um, yeah, see y'all~


	2. The year's beginning confusion!

Nya~ I hope y'all enjoy this X3 Also, in Japan, theres this superstition that when you sneeze; someone is talking about you. XD

/

"Arche...Arche...?" Bart whispered, unsure about her reaction, "Cless is at the door, ready to go to school...and you're uh, not ready?" Arche sat up immediately,

"Ahh! No way! Wah! This is the first time in ages that he's come to my house to walk to school with me!" She looked desperately at her clock. It was 8:30. She'd over-slept,

"NOO!" She jumped out of bed, and passed her bewildered looking dad, and toward the bathroom. Two seconds later, she ran back, grabbed her clothes and a towel, demanded her dad make breakfast, and ran back to the bathroom. Bart sighed,

"That girl..." he murmered, "Well, atleast she's just about used to not using magic. Thats a good thing." He headed downtairs and back to the door,

"Sorry Cless, that girl sleeps like a log. Must've switched her alarm off and fallen back sleep. Agh, and it's only the beginning of the semester." Cless shook his head,

"Oh, it's fine! It's just...well...uh...how long will she be?" Bart sweat-dropped,

"Yeah, I'm not sure...I've already made her breakfast, though it's getting cold, and she's just getting ready to come downstairs...If you want, you can come in for a few minutes Cless, though, maybe it'd be better not to, you might be late..." Cless looked very unsure of what to do,

"Well...um, I guess a few minutes couldn't hurt?" Bart had to laugh at Cless's honest indesicion,

"Well, come inside the-"

"Um, I'm ready to go!" Cless and Bart jumped as Arche appeared in the doorway, looking completely ready for the day. She smiled sweetly at Cless,

"Sorry to keep you waiting! Let's go! See you later, dad!" She pulled Cless onto the path, and they went off to school.

"...You actually walk to school with her?" Chester asked Cless, sounding incredulous,

"Huh? Yeah...Chester, she's a good person, I don't see your problem..."

"Yeah, right...Never mind..." Chester muttered. Cless changed the subject,

"So, have you learnt any new moves...?" Luckily, Arche was not in the vicinity at the time, and so had no reaction. (Although she did sneeze...)

"Math." Mint told Arche, after Arche asked their next lesson. Arche shivered,

"Math is annoying..." Mint shrugged,

"I understand what you mean, but it can be useful sometimes..." Arche gave her a look that basically meant; "What are you talking about?" Mint laughed,

"Well...Ok, maybe not so much..."

"Thankyou." muttered Arche, "When in my life am I gonna need to use algebra? Argh! Why do they make us learn it?!"

"To see whose idiotic and who isn't." Chester said slyly, taking his seat next to her. Yes, next to her. Chester and Arche had to sit next to each other. Luckily, fate wasn't quite cruel enough to have Mint and Cless sit next to one another. 'But why next to this guy!? Klarth-sensei is so...! Argh!' At that moment, the "Argh!" Klarth-sensei walked into the classroom. He grinned at everyone,

"Hello everyone! How're we all today?" He was in a very good mood. Arche wasn't,

"Oi! Just because I'm not great at maths, doesn't mean I'm dumb! 'Sides! I have something even better; tact and empathy!" She hissed at Chester. He raised an eybrow,

"Are you sure about that-?"

"Arche and Chester. Particularly enthusiastic. Great. So, can the rest of us hear your conversation, or...?" Arche stiffened. Everyone was looking at them! Including Cless!

"No sensei! I wasn't even talking to him!"

"Oi..." He hissed, 'This guy couldn't hold a decent conversation even if he took lessons!' She really wish she'd said that aloud. Chester simply went quiet, answering Klarth-sensei's question. Most of the class giggled. Arche rested her chin on her palm, as she waited for rolecall. Only a week had gone by - and she hated it. Where had the holidays gone?! And she'd made no real progress with Cless.

"Spacey too, aren't we..." Chester murmered, looking smug,

"Shut up, fox-boy..." She muttered. Then realised her name had just been called,

"Ah, yeah! I'm here!" Some of the class laughed again. It really wasn't fair. Klarth-sensei knew she was here, why did he have to call her name? Once rolecall ended, Klarth-sensei began speaking of certain school policies, looking extremely bored as he did so, when his phone rang. His eyes widened, as the class tried not to laugh. He ran to his desk, searched through his bag, and took out his phone,

"Hello? Hm? Wait...WHAT?!" Everyone jumped at his outburst, "But, how can that?! No, don't try to stop it...! I know it's dangerous, but...! Hey, I CAN do something! I'll come back right now! Ack, Mirald, the school isn't that important-! I mean! Oh great...Yes, I'll be back in a few minutes..." He hung up, and turned back to the class, looking pale,

"I...uh, have to go now...and no, I didn't mean it when I said you guys weren't important-"

"Yeah you did." Chester murmered darkly, grinning, "-but theres a real problem back home...uh, gotta go!" And he was gone. Next minute, a rumour of "His wife is having a baby!" cicled round,

"What're they, stupid?" Arche heard Chester saying to Cless. Since no one was supervising them, the class had decided to go talk with their friends,

"Didn't they hear him say "dangerous"? How dangerous can a kid be?" As terrible as agreeing with Chester was, Arche had to. Mint sweat-dropped,

"Chester-san...I-I guess they didn't hear it..."

"Too caught up in their own assumptions, huh?" Cless was still undecided of his thoughts,

"I guess what Chester says could be true...but I agree with Mint-san that they aren't stupid." He smiled at Mint as he said this. Chester rolled his eyes, and shot a quick glance at Arche, wondering her reaction,

"L-Let's just let them carry on thinking it!" She said, stuttering a little. Cless was smiling so sweetly at Mint! Well, not now, they were all looking at her, but still,

"I mean, Klarth-sensei's reaction when he hears that _will_ be funny! Right?" Chester nodded,

"I've got no choice but to agree with you." Cless laughed a little,

"As harsh as it may seem, it would be kinda funny to watch..." Chester punched him on the shoulder,

"Finally! A little bit of coldness from you!"

"What're you talking about?" They laughed at each other. Mint was in thought,

"Well...it wouldn't be so bad...I-I mean, yes it would be mean, but..." She glanced round, like a child who was up to no good, then said quietly, "I do think his expression would be rather funny." Cless, Arche and Chester froze; 'Mint is showing a little bit of cruelty!'

"What...?" Mint gave them all a confused look.

"Never mind..." Arche mumbled. A few minutes later, and Klarth was back in the room,

"Oi! When did I say you could all get up? I wasn't gonna be gone long, y'know." The class smirked at him,

"W-What?" He seemed very confused. Ai, one of the youngest students in the class, walked up to him,

"Klarth-sensei - congratulations!" Klarth gave her a blank look, which quickly changed to one of panic,

"You mean...people know?" Ai turned her head to the class, gaping, then turned back,

"Well...we assumed..." Klarth was looking dumbfounded,

"But, how could people have found out?! Oh no, if more word gets out..." He narrowed his eyes at the class, "Don't make it public knowledge now! If just by "assuming" you found out, then...it must be pretty obvious." He heaved a heavy sigh. As he trudged over to his desk, he muttered,

"How could one minute of conversation reveal I have managed to make an unstable pact with a summon spirit?! Someone in Euclid must've found out...oh great, how am I gonna get out of this?! ...I'm smart, I'll figure it out." All the class heard was a load of incoherant muttering. Cless, Mint, Arche and Chester stared at each other, wide-eyed with shock,

"H-His wife really is...?" Mint whispered uncertainly. Cless shook his head,

"That's...um..."

"I can't belive it..." Arche whispered. Chester said nothing. As they went back over to their desk, Arche murmered just loudly enough for Chester to hear,

"Looks like your theory was wrong...not surprising."

"Heh, coming from the one who agreed with me?" He replied, not looking at her. They ignored each other for the rest of the morning.

The rumour spread quickly. The teachers were surprised Klarth hadn't said anything, but they didn't chase him up on it. For the first time ever, Arche was spending lunchtime with Cless! Well, more specifically, Cless, Mint, and Chester. Mint had asked Cless and Chester to join them - she did seem nervous though. They bought food from the canteen, except Mint; she made her own lunch, and ate in their homeroom. Mint talked enthusiastically about the earlier revelation, though being Mint, she managed to speak quietly,

"...I do find it surprising he kept it quiet, being how he is, you'd think he'd have said something..." Chester said, nodding,

""Being how he is"...?" Cless quoted, confused. Chester gave him a surprised look,

"Even with today, you still don't think he's nuts...?" Cless shook his head,

"I don't think he's as bad as you make him out to be..." A dark look crossed Chester's face,

"You'll find out..." A chill went down Arche's spine,

"Chester-san, I think you're starting to scare us..." Mint said quietly,

"Hmph. It's a warning. Anyway..."

"I-I'm not scared!" Arche said indignantly. A determined look appeared on Mint's face,

"You're right, Arche-san! I think he's a good man really! I hope he brings the child to school...it'd be so cute!" The other three gave her an odd look. An image of Klarth and a mystery women holding a mystery child looking very "classic family"-like. They all shuddered at the same time, and banished it from their minds,

"W-What?" Mint asked, sounding a little indignant. Her expression made Cless smile. Arche was caught off guard, and almost choked on her food,

"Agh!"

"A-Arche-san!?" Cless asked, worriedly. Arche coughed several times, before answering hoarsely,

"I'll be fine...I think..." Cless and Mint both had the same worried expression, "Hey, it's not like I'm dying...!" She laughed at that, 'I won't be doing that for a _long_ time to come...' Cless and Mint went quiet when she laughed. Chester, who hadn't seemed to care for Arche's choking episode, glanced at everyone,

"Huh...?"

"None of your business, fox-boy!" Arche told him, then glanced at the other two, "Don't get like that guys...!" Chester looked very confused, then sighed,

"If it involves you, don't bother telling me." Arche gave him the usual glare,

"It's not like you'd understand!"

"H-Hey, guys, don't worry about it!" Cless interrupted them, "L-let's just eat..."

"Cless-kun~ Chester-kun~" It was Ai,

"How're you?" She made it obvious she was ignoring the two girls. Chester shrugged,

"I guess I'm ok." Chester sounded bored as he said this. Cless nodded and smiled at Ai,

"Yep, Ai-san! It's good to be in the same class again, huh?" He said this without sounding embarassed at all. Ai blushed and a few of her friend's giggled. A couple of girls began talking amongst themselves. Ai gave Mint a side-long glance. Mint smiled,

"Hello, Ai-san." Mint's ignorance made Arche blink several times, 'Mint-chan...as clever as you are, you don't get this kinda stuff, do you?!' Ai also looked very surprised. Arche was getting annoyed with her now. First flirting with Cless-kun, then being mean to Mint-chan! Ugh! She was better off with Chester. Arche smirked at this thought,

"Look Ai, neither Cless nor the jerk are interested in you. I don't see the point in flirting."

"Flirting...?" Cless asked. Chester only narrowed his eyes at Arche, and Mint covered her mouth,

"Ah, um, Arche-san...wasn't that a bit mean...?" Ai nodded, then said mockingly,

"You're right, Mint-chan! Arche-san is so mean!" Mint atleast understood she was being mocked,

"Um...ok then, Ai-san." Arche deliberately struck up a conversation with Cless,

"So, Cless, I hear your dad wants you to take over your sword fighting place!" It was Chester's turn to choke, "W-Wha! W-why didn't you tell me?"

"Ah! Cless-kun! You mean you didn't tell him!? Ah! I'm sorry!" Arche stammered, and Cless waved his hands,

"It's fine, Arche-san! You didn't know! I was gonna tell Chester a bit later..." 'Why a bit later...?' Arche thought, without realising she'd said it aloud. Cless scratched the back of his head, as Chester punched him on the shoulder,

"You're so lucky! Damn, you shoulda told me as soon as you found out!" He began rambling. A sad look flashed across Cless's face, but no one could be sure it was there. He mouthed at Arche; "Thats why." Arche sighed,

"I'm really sorry Cless-kun...having to listen to this idiot's ramblings..." Ai wasn't able to get a word in any way at all, so she turned to her friends, sighed, and they left the classroom. Though, she did shout,

"See you, Cless-kun, Chester-kun~!" Cless, Mint, Arche and Chester paused to watch them leave, then started laughing amongst themselves,

"That was brilliant, Arche-san." Mint said, giggling. After a while the group went quiet, as they ate. Chester made a quick glance from Mint to Cless. He finished his meal quickly, looking a little annoyed,

"Um...I think I left a few arrows at the club...And if annoying little pink girls get hints, they'd leave to get something as well." Cless and Mint gave him a clueless look. Arche felt annoyed

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Exactly what it sounded like - or is it that hard to understand?" He stood up, and walked out of the classroom. Arche glanced at the other two, who looked puzzled, which didn't help,

"Argh, jerk!" She stood up abruptly, and went after him. She had an inkling of what he might've been talking about, but it didn't seem like him to care! When she got outside, and glanced around, she saw him leaning against the opposite wall staring out the window, a little ways down. She stormed up to him,

"Just what are you doing?!" He gave her a dissaproving look,

"Exactly what it looks like - looking out the window."

"Huh! You know what I mean!" He paused,

"...I think it's pretty clear Cless and Mint have a thing for each other. I asked him a little while ago, and he got confused. When I explained what I meant, he got all embarrassed. He's a pretty simple guy-"

"I think it's mean to be talking about your best friend like this! Besides, Cless-kun isnt "a simple guy" he's really sweet, cute, caring...!" Chester put a hand to his forehead,

"Oh, how ever could I forget about your little crush on Cless?" Arche scowled at him,

"It's not a "little crush"! Cless-kun has been my best friend since I was little-!"

"Wouldn't it be better for it to stay that way?" Arche blinked,

"Wha...?"

"Well, you seem pretty happy the way you are now-"

"What? Y-You don't have a clue! I dunno why I'm talking about this with you!" He glared at her,

"Well, if your brain can't conprehend that concept, then fine! Enjoy being like that!"

"You...!" People had begun staring at them, and whispering amongst themselves. Arche and Chester stopped arguing,

"...I'm gonna go back now." Arche hissed at him, and hurried back to the classroom. Chester hung around for a few minutes longer, then went back.

"Wah...the school year...feels like it's gonna take forever..." Arche said, sighing as she and Cless left the classroom, heading for home. Cless lived in the small town of Hira, which was a little ways away from Arche's house. She talked cheerfully to him on the way back, trying to forget about stupid Chester's stupid comment,

"So, are ya looking forward to taking over the place?" He looked at her, apparently lost in thought,

"I guess...I'll have to - I-I mean, yes." He sounded sort of down to begin with, then brought cheerful tone in at the end. Arche wasn't sure what to make of it. So she changed the subject. The cheerful tone continued, but the feelings that were concealed underneath it wouldn't go away.

When Arche got back, she ran into her room and flopped onto her bed,

"This...ugh! I feel so confused...but..." She sat up, "Cless-kun seemed kinda...I wonder if theres a way to find out? And what about him and Mint-chan!? When I got back there, they were both blushing! And most of all...what did that fox-eyed jerk mean!? I do love Cless-kun! We've been together for ages! Is it that impossible to be with your childhood friend? My old friend was...!"

"Arche? Are you alright?" Called her dad,

"I-I'm fine!" Arche shouted back, almost defiantly, flopping back onto her bed.


	3. Midterms, Cless and more confusion!

Uh...enjoy? XD;

/

"Midterms...."

"Midterms..."

"No...No!" Arche screeched, as the life-sized pieces of paper, with impossible questions flew at her, "NOOO!"

Arche sat up, shaking a little. She glanced at her clock. Luckily, it had one minute before it went off, 'One minute more sleep then!'

"Beeep!" Arche switched her alarm off, sat up and blinked a few times, 'What did I dream about...?' She remembered a vague picture, then gasped,

"Ack! Midterms! Today!" She jumped out of bed, and rushed round the house, getting ready for the day, 'What was the formula for Iron!? Damn, it's so easy, and I'm still forgetting?!

"It's...Fe! Yes, fE! I mean, Fe...!"

There was a knock at the door,

"Ah, Cless, she's just get-."

"Actually, I'm already ready!" Arche announced, standing on the path outside. Cless and Bart looked at her dumbfounded, 'How did she get out there, _without_ Cless seeing her walk past?! Was her magic always that advanced?!'

"Cless-kun!" Arche said as they walked along,

"Yes...?"

"You have to quiz me!"

"Ok!" He seemed oddly determined, "What on?"

"Science!" She replied, equally as determined. It WAS science they had on their test that day.

"OK! Um...Oh, what is..." He began quizzing her as they walked, 'Kya! That expression of his is so...!' Arche silently "kya'd" to herself.

And the week passed, mid-terms being just that extra bit cruel.

Just to let all readers know, the past weeks have passed with misunderstanding after misunderstanding about Klarth. It is rather wondrous that something like his wife is having a baby is still belived, wouldn't you agree? Even our heroes have yet to realise...

"Have you seen Klarth-sensei's baby yet?" Mint asked Arche, excitedly. Arche blinked a few times,

"Huh...?" Her and Mint had just walked out of class, last day of mid-terms, and she was wondering about Klarth-sensei and his kid?! Mint waited, looking slightly impatient. Arche paused,

"I...haven't heard a thing...I saw him this morning, but..." Mint sighed,

"...I knew it...what a shame..." Arche still felt confused, and Mint explained, "Ai-san told me that Klarth-sensei was bringing the baby into school!" Arche gave her a side look,

"Its Ai...do you really think she'd tell the truth...?" Mint sighed,

"I suppose you're right..." She sounded a little defeated, 'Why does she wanna see the kid so much?'

"Because...I guess I'd just like to see Klarth-sensei being all fatherly! Plus, who wouldn't want to see the baby?" Arche sighed,

"Mint-chan...how do you do that?" Were Arche's thoughts really that easy to read?! Mint smiled,

"Eheh...well, I guess it is kind of weird to think the way I do..." Arche sighed,

"You're telling me...how can you not be worried at all?! We just had our mid-terms..." Mint laughed, then began talking about always staying positive.

"...and the third question! It was so...well, lets just say I'll never remember how to say...anything at all...in English." Chester said to Cless. He overheard Arche moaning to Mint about how difficult the test was. As he and Cless walked past, Chester gave her a side-long glance,

"...Were you even able to _read_ question one?" Was his snide remark. Arche rounded on him,

"...um, I'll have you know I overheard you! Had trouble with question 3, huh...?" She smirked at him, "That must've been the easiest question!" He narrowed his eyes,

"Let me guess, it was the _only_ question you knew the answer to?" Just as Arche opened her mouth, Cless stepped in between them,

"Guys, why do you argue so much...anyway, we've finished the mid-terms, let's relax for awhile! Yeah?" Mint nodded,

"Cless-san is right! Let's go get something to eat..." Arche and Chester glared at each other for a second more, then stalked off toward the canteen with Cless and Mint just behind them.

Arche felt really down. Now she really thought about it - she'd known Cless for so long, yet he never really seemed to have any romantic feelings toward her! No matter how kind he acted, there was something different about the way he spoke to Mint...Arche really hoped she was being paranoid.

"Oi, Arche." Chester said absent-mindedly, "You're spacing out...jeez, space-girl." She sighed,

"Oh, shut up."

"Oi..." Chester and Arche were standing in the cue to pay for their lunch. He glanced over at Cless and Mint, who were a little ahead, then glanced back at Arche, who was also looking over at them. It was clear she was upset. Chester sighed,

"You do know you've got no chance..." he murmered just loud enough for her to hear. She looked up at him and glared,

"It's none of your buisness! I'm not thinking of that anyway!"

"Sure..." She sighed loudly,

"Stupid Chester is stupid..." She hissed loudly. He narrowed his eyes at her, glanced over at the other two, and sighed,

"It's not like this is gonna do anything, but oh well..." he walked out of the que, over to Cless, said something, and dragged him back over to where he'd just been standing,

"Oi, Chester! Why don't you just let Arche save your spot?" Chester pushed Cless next to Arche,

"You really think I'd trust _her_? I'll be back in a minute." Chester sprinted off. Arche didn't understand why he'd do something like that...But it was a sort of oppurtunity! Oh, but what should she say?! What was she talking about? This was _Cless_!

"Hm...Cless-kun! Since we're as close as we are...!" She glanced round. The other students were engaged in talk with their friends.

"What kind of girl do you like?" She whispered to him. He obviously heard, as he looked at her, confused,

"Huh? Is it important...?" Arche sighed,

"I guess not..." 'Don't give up!' "...but! You have to!"

"But...it depends what you mean." Arche face-palmed,

"Romantically, of course!"

"Oh! uh..." Cless went a little red, "Well..." Arche was happy to hear this. Why had it never ocurred to her to ask him before?! Mind you, she'd only realised she'd loved him two years ago! Unfortunately for Arche, they were at the front of the cue now, ordering, 'Gah! Why did I spend that time listening to my stupid narrative-like thoughts?! I'll have to ask him later...' Mint smiled as they walked out toward her,

"What did you get, Mint-chan?" Arche asked,

"Huh? Well...I have an obento, so I only bought a little something here..." It was true. She'd bought one onigiri (Riceball). They walked back to their homeroom. When they got there, they found Chester leaning casually on the side of their table. He looked at them as they walked in,

"Hey." Arche felt a little taken aback, 'Didn't he buy anything?' Cless voiced her question,

"I guess I just don't feel that hungry."

"If you're sure..." Cless said, not sounding sure himself. They sat down, and began eating. (Except for Chester, obviously.) And as normal; Arche and Mint sat on one side, Chester and Cless the other. As they ate, Mint glanced at Chester, who was staring out the nearby window. She glanced down at the onigiri she'd bought, then pushed it toward him,

"Here, Chester-san...I'd feel bad if you ate nothing..." Chester looked at her, surprised. He glanced down at the onigiri,

"You...sure?" She nodded, and smiled,

"T-Thanks...I guess..." Chester murmered, and began eating. Not one sarcastic remark! He would've if Arche had given him something, 'Not that I _would've_ given him something!' Arche thought defiantly. Arche caught Cless giving Mint a warm smile, and sighed very quietly, 'But...it's not like I've heard him say that he likes her outright...' Cless caught Arche looking at him, and grinned sheepishly. Arche supressed a kya. He was so cute! Klarth entered the room, and everyone looked intently at him. He looked at them all, confused,

"...have you all got something to say?" he asked, and everyone in the room turned back to what they were doing, quickly. As he went to his desk to pick up his bags, he muttered,

"They must be afraid...dammit...no one will own up to knowing anything back home...what am I going to do? I had to seal that damn summon spirit away as best I can, but the impression won't go...!"

Now, I am about to do something cliche. Because it is going to be fun to confuse our pink hero. Plus; she's half-elf, her senses are sharper than a normal humans! Why did she not hear Klarth earlier? Ladies and gentlemen, I give you an excuse: Screwing with my sort-of-but-not-really-established canon is funny. Yeah... :'D

Arche blinked, staring at her half-eaten food in shock, 'Summon spirit...?' She asked herself. She'd heard that name from her dad before...She'd have to ask him when she got home. But, if thats what Klarth had said, then his wife wasn't actually pregnant...! Now that she thought about it, when had it been established he _was_ married? Everyone assumed so because he wore a ring. But maybe he just liked to wear rings? An extrememly weird image of Klarth wearing lots of jewelry entered her mind. She forgot everything else just trying to get it out of her mind. Just before Klarth left the classroom, he gave the class a sweeping look, then left. Loud talk broke out,

"Whats his problem...?" and "He acts like its a bad thing...!" Floated around. Arche shook her head, and ate a little quicker, staring intently into space all the time. Chester glanced at her, then away. Cless looked up at her,

"Arche-san...what's wrong...?" She blinked. Cless-kun could always tell when there was something bothering her! He was so...! She shook her head and grinned,

"I-I'm ok! Guess I'm just spacing out!"

"No surprises there." Chester said quietly. She shot him a "I hate you" look, then went back to her food. Mint looked at everyone round the table,

"Um...you all seem gloomy all of a sudden...is everyone alright?" They all looked up at her, surprised. Cless smiled,

"I'm ok, Mint-san!" A small smile appeared on Chester's face,

"I will be now, thanks Mint." he held up the packet that had had the onigiri in it. Arche grinned,

"Mint-chan, empathetic as always?" She laughed a little,

"No, not really...it's just pretty quiet." Chester gave Arche a side glance,

"You're right, Pinky isn't talking, something must be up." Arche glared at him,

"Ugh, what is your problem!" Should she say something to them? Maybe she'd talk to Cless on the way home. Or maybe tomorrow, after she'd asked her dad about Summon Spirits.

She got away with saying their was nothing wrong, but Mint knew there was something wrong. Arche suspected Cless did too; being the awesome guy he was! She doubted Chester had a clue, knowing what a jerk he was. Cless didn't say much on the way back. He seemed lost in his own thoughts. It was a weekend tomorrow, so Arche thought it might be nice to go do some practice. She'd have time to talk to her dad then, and speak about it to Cless after. Cless and Mint were the only two people she'd talk to like that. She didn't like the sound of "summon spirits". She was sure she'd heard it somewhere before; and it wasn't good.

"Sooo...Cless-kun, ya wanna do some training later?" He turned his head slowly to her,

"Huh...? Oh, uh, yeah. Ok." She frowned,

"What's bothering you?" He laughed,

"Nothing! Just thinking..."

"Uh-huh, well, lemme know if I can help!" She grinned at him, and he returned her grin,

"Thanks." She blushed a little, 'He is so cute when he smiles! Of course, I already knew that!'

"Summon sprirts?" He dad looked surprised, Well, they're..." And he told her what he knew. He told her how Summon Spirits were powerful beings that had to be beaten to have a contract with. Their contractor could command them to do whatever they want - even take over the world. Or that was how it was told. Legend had it that there was a Summon Spirit in the valley where Arche and her dad lived!

"W-Wha?! Why didn't you tell me something like that?!" Bart shrugged,

"It's just a legend..." Arche slowly walked out of the lounge, he legs feeling weak. Klarth-sensei had tamed a summon spirit - if his ramblings were to be believed. Her jaw dropped a little as she thought, 'Klarth-sensei is gonna try to take over the world!' She paused, and stared out of her hallway window, looking out over the valley that was her home. It looked gloomy, as usual.

"...Nah."

/

Um, yeah...uh...yeah...I'm not getting anywhere XD I just hoped people liked this~


End file.
